Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “selection”

wp.org orders by popularity, so a plugin a host bundled onto millions of sites, or a big-brand one that's slow and mediocre, can sit at the top. Our ranking is built to answer a different question: which of these is actually worth installing. How this works →

For “selection”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 2 plugins are pushed down for signals wp.org ignores: errors, a host-installed base, or removal risk.

wp.org search ranks on

Install count (uncapped), the raw star average, freshness, and support. Popularity dominates, so the biggest install base usually wins regardless of how it got there.

We add

A cap on the install boost, volume-weighted ratings, and signals wp.org can't see: whether it throws errors on current PHP, whether the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

M

Ranked above its merit

Multiple Category Selection Widget shows at wp.org #4 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 2.9★ average from 14 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WP Content Copy Protection & No Right Click places #6 on merit, 4.8★ from 1138 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WP Datepicker 6K+ · 4.8★ (37) wp.org #3 2 too low 2 Slider, Gallery, and Carousel by MetaSlider – Image Slider, Video Slider 500K+ · 4.6★ (742) wp.org #6 ↓1 4 too low 3 Variation Swatches for WooCommerce – Color, Image & Size Swatches 200K+ · 4.6★ (51) wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too low 4 Ultra Addons for Contact Form 7 60K+ · 4.8★ (107) wp.org #8 4 too low 5 Secure Copy Content Protection and Content Locking 20K+ · 4.3★ (62) wp.org #7 ↓1 2 too low 6 WP Content Copy Protection & No Right Click 100K+ · 4.8★ (1138) wp.org #16 ↓2 10 too low 7 Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 300K+ · 4.8★ (926) wp.org #10 ↑7 3 too low 8 Reviews and Rating – Google Reviews 20K+ · 4.9★ (184) wp.org #12 ↓5 4 too low 9 Country and State Selection Addon for Gravity Forms 900+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #2 7 too high 10 Selection Lite 9K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #1 9 too high 11 Advanced Shipment Tracking for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.5★ (355) wp.org #13 2 too low 12 HTML Editor Syntax Highlighter 60K+ · 4.4★ (110) wp.org #19 7 too low 13 CartFlows – Funnel Builder & Checkout Plugin for WooCommerce 200K+ · 4.8★ (517) wp.org #22 9 too low 14 Bus Ticket Booking with Seat Reservation 700+ · 4.9★ (41) wp.org #18 4 too low 15 Simple Admin Language Change 10K+ · 4.7★ (22) wp.org #15 ↓4 16 Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 8K+ · 4.9★ (86) wp.org #17 ↓4 1 too low 17 M Multiple Category Selection Widget 100+ · 2.9★ (14) wp.org #4 ↓1 13 too high 18 Starter Sites & Templates by Neve 100K+ · 4.7★ (77) wp.org #23 ↓5 5 too low 19 Smart COD for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.6★ (52) wp.org #24 ↓9 5 too low 20 Custom Highlight Color 900+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #9 11 too high 21 W WP Display Header 7K+ · 4.5★ (27) wp.org #21 ↓5 22 Disable Right Click RB – Content Copy Protection, Prevent Copy & No Right Click 600+ · 4.2★ (14) wp.org #20 2 too high 23 Extendify 500K+ · 4.7★ (10) wp.org #14 ↓2 9 too high 24 PhotoBerry Studio for Photographers – Image Selection, Proofing, Watermarking & Client Management 50+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #11 ↓1 13 too high

Merit ranking caps the install boost at 1M (wp.org leaves it uncapped), replaces the raw star average with a volume-weighted Bayesian score and a Wilson lower bound, and keeps wp.org's own freshness and compatibility decays. Method from the plugin-directory source; see Meta Trac #8298. Positions are tracked daily from the first visit to a keyword, so the small arrows show movement since tracking began.